Hybrid vs Flatbar Road Bike

[Catrin]

Hi Catrin,

I just ordered a Specialized Vita Comp, and will be getting it in a week or two.........What convinced me was the Vita Comp had a bit better componentry, and the Vita was $100 less, and I liked the color better..

Good luck with your shopping.
Ciao

Congrats on the new bike! If I were to go out tomorrow, I would probably get the Trek FX 7.5 or 7.6, but I have a few months to be before I have to make that decision Who can say just what I will finally wind up with The research will indeed be fun, for sure.

[macski]

I have a Fuji hybrid and on the week-end did a two day 133 km ride. The first thing I did on Monday was go to the LBS to look at flat bar road bikes

I'm planning to commute to work sometimes and had planned to do this on the hybrid but the long ride convinced me that a bike that's lighter and faster will meet my needs more effectively.

[moderncyclista]

Try a drop bar bike too. I find them more comfortable. I used to be scared of how uncomfortable I thought they'd be, now I prefer drop bars to any other type.

[Geonz]

I started with an entry level Giant Hybrid and it met my needs for a while, but when I took to riding regularly with groups, I was on a heavier bike with fatter tires than everybody else; I had to work a lot harder (and it was like driving a truck amongst sports cars -- accelerations and decelerations required constant attention).
If you're mostly going to be riding on your own, or with some people chatting as opposed to a paceline, you'll probably be happy with the 7300 - though you might want to move to thinner tires at some point if you're on the road.
I went to a 7500FX (now a 7.5, I thnk) when I wanted something lighter and I love it -- the bar isn't that much higher, and it is great for riding reasonably long & hard. However, it's aluminum, so if it's a week of 50+ miles a day, that beats up my butt so I go back to the original hybrid and just work harder
When my friend was in a similar situation and was looking at the 7.3, I convinced her to give the 7.5 a spin around the parking lot. She liked it a lot better and got it.
So... bottom line is, what feels good to **you**. Which one do you feel like you could just keep pedaling? THat's what led me to get my first bike, and I still put 5-6000 miles on it every year.

[Catrin]

Thanks for the tips and suggestions - I wound up with a Trek 7.6 FX - I mentioned this elsewhere but figured I should post it on this thread as well. I love it, and I am grabbing every warmish moment I can to get out on her and practice - I am also learning how to ride

[moderncyclista]

Oh, good. Glad you found something that works for you. Keep on riding!